Some Assembly Required
by Saeleth
Summary: Team 7, some parts imagined, some parts real. The possibilities of three different people bound by many things. They could be many things, but most important is what they are to each other.[Team 7 drabbles with many genres]
1. fate's cruel strings

fate's cruel strings

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the supposed force, principle, or power that predetermines events.

* * *

She was as poised and cool as the weapon in her hand. He might have laughed at the sheer absurdity of the situation. The last of the great ones to fall at the hands of an assassin with hair the shade of bubble gum.

She is not collected; her eyes twitch everywhere, seeking the escape from this madness. She does not wish to be here, though neither have a choice in the matter.

"Hesitation, Sakura?" his voice is slightly mocking.

She drew herself up straight. He knew she was close to her breaking point, as close as she could ever be without crumbling.

He had brought her closer and closer every time they met. If he had not already been consumed by hate, he would despise himself for that.

"Crying? Over Konoha's traitor? For the Hokage's assistant, your priorities leave a lot to be desired." He sneers.

She slumps down, her katana clattering to rest at her side. How easy it would be, to reach over, swift as a snake, and slide that smooth metal blade though her soft flesh. Yet his hand doesn't even twitch.

"Sakura, kill me now." It's not quite a demand, but neither a request. It just is.

She looks up and over at his form, trying to decipher what he really means. Her eyes memorize every detail; the dark hair slicked down by the rain, the clothes with that hated purple bow, though his sword has disappeared, and his eyes. His eyes, she saw something in the steady stare that has decided her. He wants this, and she could never resist what he wanted.

She nodded, her tears held back by her impressive willpower alone. He will not see her tears fall. She stands and only wobbles a bit. She raises the blade, ready to strike.

He tilts his head back, "please."

It plunges its deadly, graceful arc into his pale body.

Faintly, he says his last words to his fractured team.

"Sakura, thank you." He sighs softly, and whispers, quiet as the spring breeze, "tell Naruto I wasn't worth saving."

There are more words that die with him. Important things he never did find the time to say, or the right words to use. That they meant everything to him, that they should stop chasing him, he was sorry for making them cry. He didn't mean for it to end this way. Most importantly, sorry.

His eyes close, and with that, the last of the Sharingan users, the famed Uchiha, passes into the next world. He wears a soft smile that was not seen in life. Not on his face or any other of the cursed Uchiha. They died with crimson in their eyes, the cursed clan. His eyes are dark, and full of regret for what has transpired.

Sakura holds him then, as she could not in life. She croons into his hair, the litany of why he is loved. Why they chased after him. She won't wash his blood off her clothes, nor will she look away from what he has become.

He still deserved better.


	2. critical

critical

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extremely important because of being a time or happening at a time of special difficulty, trouble, or danger, when matters could quickly get either worse or better

* * *

They don't speak, not this time. Neither dares to say the words, though those words reverberate through the minds, a crescendo to the last three years. If they say the words, who knows what will happen? 

So they are silent.

They push themselves to the limit, harried on by the feeling of being too late. They can't be though. Sakura thinks it's too fast, that all those small pieces of information should all click together suddenly, leaving them days to traverse weeks of territory.

It never was supposed to be like this.

They had left the others behind. They came on this mission, not because they wanted Sasuke back, but because they didn't want Naruto and Sakura to go alone.

It didn't matter though; they had still ended up alone.

Even Kakashi didn't have the determination to chase after a wisp of a hope when his feet gave way beneath him.

When Naruto fell, he just got back up.

When Sakura fell, she had to get back up, because neither would wait for her.

So they ran, until their legs gave way beneath them. They ran until their sandals were almost gone, their soles ragged and bleeding. They ran until even their hair and fingernails ached from the exertion.

Then the place that for days had been a far away 'there' in their minds, a red mark slashed on a creased map, was suddenly there. Some might call it anticlimactic, but they were too tired to care.

It was a plain, with long grass that offered all the concealment one would need. The two figures below weren't utilizing that feature. Their eyes were locked on one another, trying to kill by stare alone. With those two, it was a possibility. This meeting had figured in all their lives for years now, yet all they can do is stare, unable to move past that point. Unsure of what the next move is. For years their goals have been simple, a matter of finding. Now what do they do with what they have found?

An eternity was compressed into a second, and the rush of time starts again, as the two brothers forgo their staring contest and rush at each other with their kunais drawn.

"It's time," and Naruto grins ferally.

Sakura is less sure. "It'll all be right after this, won't it Naruto?" Her eyes are pleading, full of uncertainty and questions that can't be asked.

Naruto pauses, but he smiles again. "Of course, Sakura-chan. It will be all right."

Then he's off, and she has no choice but to follow.


End file.
